Sunday, August 2, 2009

Vung Tau Milpitas

Every Vietnamese person I know touts this restaurant as the place to experience real Vietnamese food. I can easily see where the illustrious reputation comes from. After repeated visits (and many more future visits planned), Vung Tau is hands-down my favorite Vietnamese restaurant.


So it was with great excitement that I introduced my Japanese friends (the same ones who taught me to make temaki sushi) to the pleasures of Vung Tau. We started off with some spicy tofu, which was delightfully fresh, with just the right level of spiciness:


The seafood soup was equally good, with very fresh ingredients and a stimulating tang:


We tried the catfish stew, a dish enthusiastically recommended by a Vietnamese colleague whom I hold in high esteem. The dish did not disappoint, as the meat was tender, and the sauce rich and tasty:


For me however, the absolute star of the show was the grilled beef rolls stuffed with onions. This is the dish that keeps me coming back to Vung Tau. The thin slices of beef are grilled to a perfect crisp tastiness, with the onion strips adding a subtle kick:


The verdict from our Japanese friends? I got an email calling Vung Tau "the BEST Vietnamese restaurant!" (capitalization and exclamation point theirs)

I couldn't agree more.

Vung Tau II on Urbanspoon

7 comments:

foodhoe said...

I went there once with my my hubby and we didn't get anything very exciting. But these dishes look great, and I think that the SJ location was reviewed on Check Please Bay Area a while back. Thanks for posting with pictures so we know what's good to order!

AsianFoodFanatic said...

Hi Foodhoe!

I was very fortunate to get some advice from my Vietnamese friend, who urged me to get the grilled beef rolls and catfish stew.

As for the rest of the dishes, our Japanese friends deserve the credit. They scanned the menu and ordered what looked good to them based on their personal tastes, and their choices turned out to be hits!

cheers
AsianFoodFanatic

Bonnibella said...

I've been to Vung Tau in SJ, this place looks good especially the catfish stew

AsianFoodFanatic said...

Hi Cocochanelella

The catfish stew was every bit as good as it looked.

By the way, if you are fond of catfish you might want to try the catfish dish called "amok" at Chez Sovan Cambodian restaurant in Campbell. You can check out my blog post on Chez Sovan here.

cheers
AsianFoodFanatic

NMOS said...

I used to live in the Bay Area and I do miss the area and the food. I used to visit Goldilocks in San Jose/Milpitas area a lot. Good Filipino food.

Amy B. said...

All the dishes look yummy! I especially love the spicy tofu. I havent really been there but it would be nice to visit the place one time. :D everything looks good and delicious!

boulevardsg said...

Vung Tau Milpitas is wonderful. You have shared wonderful information

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